Technology Makes Prescriptions Safer

I was searching The Wall Street Journal online and came across an article, “Digital Records Spot Side Effects,” by Jonathan Rockoff on October 15, 2010 (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703631704575552443826670572.html).  It looked like an article very relevant to this informatics course, so I started reading.

This article was taking a look at the advantages of electronic records related to prescription medications. Pfizer Inc. sponsored a study performed at Massachusetts General and Brigham & Women's hospitals in Boston that delved into the system used to prescribe medications and report incident or adverse reactions. This study indicates that physicians are more likely to report issues when using electronic tools. This study was published last week in the medical journal Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety. It was conducted over a five month period in 2008-2009. The study stated that between those two hospitals, 217 side effects were reported, compared to none the prior year. Although that would be ideal, I doubt it’s possible.

With the system the physicians were using, when a medication was discontinued for a patient, the physician would have to state why, and if the side effect was serious. This would generate an alert in the system.  Approximately one in five of these adverse effects were considered serious, according to the physicians. Dr. Jeffrey Linder, an internist who led this study, is now working to expand this technology.

This article goes on to explain that there have been other studies done indicating that physician’s do not report side effects to the FDA. The article says “just a tiny fraction of doctors submit the voluntary reports.” With a system like this, with ease and efficiency, it is much more likely for a physician to report side effects. This would help the FDA with its regulations, determine and identify more problems.

The more information, the better. With accurate reporting of side effects, drug companies will be able to conduct more studies with their drugs in different types of people, and the FDA can keep a closer eye on prescription medications. Obviously the patients are safer with a system like this. Drug interactions can be caught immediately, and side effects can be managed. With all the different possible variables, medicine is not an exact science. It evolves daily.  The more tools that become available and the more advanced the technology becomes, a physician is freer to focus on his/her job of caring for the patient and being confident with decisions.